Millions of people in America watch television. To be exact, according to the
A.C. Nielsen Co., an average American watches more than four hours of television
a day. This is because television not only offers resourceful and quick information
to its viewers, but also a variety of programs that almost anyone can find an
interest in.

Over the past years, television has not only been a form of entertainment,
but also a form of life. Therefore, it is not surprising that an average household
in the United States has more than two television sets, as supported by the
Nielsen Media Company in a 2001 research.

Many people across the nation rely on television for information and entertainment
as they did many years ago. In 1948, television played a significant role in
presidential elections, however, its influence was limited because there were
only 35,000 sets with 37 stations at the time.

The American public continues to purchase television sets for their homes.
In the year 1945, there were fewer than 10,000 sets in the country. By 1960,
there were 52 million sets in American homes, which is one in almost nine out
of ten households. This figure soared to 219 million in 1997.

The number of television sets in the United States increases annually, as
people stay up to date with events around them. This is why there are currently
285 million televisions in use in US households, according to the data from
the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA).

"The number of television sets in U.S. households in 2001: 248 million"

248 Million (2001)

The television today is arguably one of the most popular home electronic
devices. Since it became commercially available in the 1930’s, the television
has skyrocketed in popularity, with nearly 77% of households owning at
least one television set by 1955. Today, the television is almost a necessity,
with 99% of households owning at least one set.

In the majority of cases, the television relies on a device called the cathode
ray tube, or CRT for short. Inside this CRT, a stream of electrons is focused
into a tight beam and then accelerated. This beam is directed at a phosphor
coated screen at the other end of the tube, which glows when struck by
electrons. However, with only a CRT, the beam cannot be focused, and you
would simply get a dot of color. This is why several coils, called steering
coils, are wrapped around the CRT. These coils are used to create a magnetic
field, which can be used to steer the beam of electrons and create the
image you see.

Other types of televisions used today are liquid crystal display TVs and
plasma TVs, which both operate in different ways from the CRT. However,
the CRT still greatly outnumbers other types of television.

The television is considered by many to be the greatest (or the worst) advancement
ever in entertainment. Ever since its introduction, the TV has risen in
popularity immensely. Today, very few people are without a set in their
own home, and many even have two or more. According to the World Factbook,
published by the CIA, there are currently over 219 million TVs in the United
States, and that number appears to be getting even bigger in the future.